WINKTON
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E-Mail me!Updated 28 Nov 2014.
Lat/Long 50 46 30N/01 45 45W .
Grid ref:SZ 165975 .
40 feet ASL.
3 miles NNE of Christchurch.
Ident"XT".
USAAF Airfield No.414(callsign"Drainsink")
RUNWAYS:Pierced Steel Planking/Sommerfeld Track.
N/S 1600x50 yds.
E/W 1500x50 yds
Winkton A.L.G.The picture shows the site in January 1947:"A" = Winkton village,"B" = Sopley village,"C" = RAF GCI establishment(WW2),later became "Southern Radar","D" RAF Sopley -Postwar accomodation for GCI unit ,"E" Bransgore.
The modern strip is to the north side of Derritt Lane.
Built in 1943 by RAF Airfield Construction Units,Winkton did not come into use until 4/4/44 when the USAAF 9th AF arrived in the form of the 404th Fighter Group.They remained until 6/7/44 ,at which time they moved to a base in France.Within a few months the steel plank and mesh runways were removed and the land returned to agriculture.The RAF camp to the east was not built until after WW2 and the GCI site to the north was not connected with the airfield in any way.
Seen above, P-47D-25-RE 225599 of 506 Sq/404FG.
The site of Winkton today.The airfield was just left of centre ,with RAF Sopley camp at upper right and the radar establishment at upper left.In 2007 a private airstrip came into use at Sopley Farm.
USAAF UNITS
404 Fighter Group/506/507/508 Fighter Squadrons,P-47D,(Aircraft codes 4K/Y8/7J,Callsigns "Tuba"-506th:"Neptune"-507th:"Robert"-508th) arr 4/4/44,dep 6/7/44
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